Tonsillectomy Improves Patients’ Quality of Life

Data on quality of life (QOL) after tonsillectomy were obtained by means of the Glasgow Benefit Inventory and a questionnaire specifically designed for the study. Participants filled in several questionnaires, first before surgery and then again at 14 months and seven years after, with questions regarding sore throat incidences and QOL.

The results showed a postoperative improvement of QOL at 14 months and at seven years, with participants reporting an improved QOL. The number of yearly episodes of sore throat fell from 10 preoperatively to 2 postoperatively; the number of visits to the doctor fell from five to less than one a year; the intake of analgesic drugs and antibiotics fell dramatically; and the number of work absences due to illness also were reduced on average from more than eleven days per year to less than two after surgery. The study was published on December 11, 2015, in Deutsches Aerzteblatt International.

“Participants’ quality of life, their general well-being, their social relationships, and their physical health improved after surgery,” concluded lead author Götz Senska, MD, and colleagues of the department of otorhinolaryngology. “The 62% response rate at seven years leaves the question open whether patients with a favorable postoperative course may have been more likely than others to participate in the study.”

Tonsillectomy is a 3,000-year-old surgical procedure in which the tonsils are removed from either side of the throat. The procedure is performed in response to cases of repeated occurrence of acute tonsillitis or adenoiditis, obstructive sleep apnea (OPA), nasal airway obstruction, snoring, or peritonsillar abscess. Tonsillectomy is often performed together with adenoidectomy, the surgical removal of the adenoids; this may be done for several reasons, including impaired breathing and chronic infections or earaches.

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